On my morning commute to university, I witnessed a small, quiet moment: a father dropping his young daughter off outside a sports club. In that simple act, he was giving her not just a ride but the strength to occupy space, to compete and to grow. 

A child naturally yearns for the attention of a father because fatherhood itself is the most magical thing that could ever happen to this world. For children, a father is their very first best friend, their Superman. A father is the one who protects you from the scoldings of your mother and acts as the ultimate partner-in-crime. A father is not just someone who provides financially for his children, he is the deep root from whom children learn how to perform, grow, and maneuver their way through life.

But contrast that magic with another reality. I recently heard about my uncle’s driver, who was forced to send his young daughter back to their village right at the brink of her first-year Intermediate final exams. The reason given wasn’t nearly as important as her education, yet despite a whole year of grueling hard work, the decision was made for her to leave. Just like that, a year of ambition was completely erased. It is easy to point fingers, but perhaps no father is inherently a villain.

Often the true villain in a young person’s life is simply the absence of paternal support. When a father’s backing is missing, whether due to societal pressure, rigid mindsets, or sheer circumstances, it is the child’s future that pays the price.

We cannot forget what absence of a father’s love does to a daughter. They say there is an imaginary box in every person’s life: a box for a mother, a box for a friend, a box for siblings and a box for a father. When the father’s box remains empty, a girl will often try to fill that void by choosing the wrong people for it: the wrong friends and most of the time, the wrong partners.

Human psychology hates an empty space. When a girl grows up without that primary reassurance, she often spends her life searching for it in the eyes of strangers. Because she never learned what safe, protective, and unconditional love feels like from the first man in her life. Her boundaries blur. She might tolerate disrespect or settle for less, mistaking any fleeting attention for the validation she was starved of at home.

A woman’s confidence in life stems deeply from the backing of her father. For a little girl, he is her very first protective factor. A father’s belief acts as a shield against a harsh society.  When he stands with his daughter, she doesn’t just step into the world; she steps into it with the absolute certainty that she belongs there.

This absence shapes boys just as deeply, though it manifests differently. For a boy, a father is their very first mentor, the ultimate figure they look up to and try to emulate. He is the first blueprint of accountability, strength, and emotional security. Without a father’s guidance to channel his energy into resilience, a boy is often left to confront a harsh world entirely on his own. He might look to rigid, toxic societal scripts to figure out what it means to be a man, repeating the same cycles of emotional absence because he was never shown a real example of being a man.

Ultimately, paternal support is the invisible scaffolding upon which a child builds their self-worth. It tells them that they are seen, that their dreams are valid, and that they have a safe harbor to return to when the world gets too loud.

With paternal support, a child can conquer the world.

This Father’s Day, let’s celebrate more than just a title. Let’s champion the fathers who open doors, protect ambitions, and refuse to let the world shrink their children’s dreams. Let’s celebrate the fathers who’ve been there for their children from the beginning till the end.